


The View From Up Here

by Bluestarshine



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Depression, Friendship, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-23
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:20:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23812219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bluestarshine/pseuds/Bluestarshine
Summary: Ashe is lost and broken at the death of Lonato, so the Blue Lions and Ingrid task themselves to bring back the joyful smile that belonged to him.
Kudos: 10





	The View From Up Here

**Author's Note:**

> Please consider supporting me by commissioning me to write you a story of your very own: https://ko-fi.com/bluestarshine

Ashe hadn’t been the same since he saw lifeless eyes and body as he has been slain by the church. He had his suspicions on the truth behind his rebellion against the church, but he was too overwhelmed to have lost yet another person who he considered family. The monastery’s usual bundle of joy turned into an empty husk.

He would hardly eat or sleep, he either skipped classes or dozed off, and would sit out during training and missions. For someone who had been there for everyone, nobody seemed to be there for him. This caught the professor’s attention, but they were unsure of how to approach the situation as they felt partly at fault.

The Blue Lions tried to slowly warm up to him, but he would either snap or brush anyone away as he didn’t want to be around anyone. He lacked basic nutrition, and would occasionally collapse suddenly of exhaustion and hunger. The whole monastery seemed to avoid him, aside from the professors and Rhea who seemed to be the only ones brave enough to talk about the situation.

His health only further deteriorated, and he began to have eye bags that made Bernedetta even more scared than when Hubert would scare her. Everyone distanced themselves for Ashe while he grieved, but he didn’t seem to ever cry, he only looked mad at himself.

The only thing he maintained was his reading, he would spend all day and night reading, most likely to distract him from how he was really feeling. He always wanted to be a knight and save people who were in need, but how could he save himself when he was in need? 

He cursed the world and the church for the loss of Lonato and would go to the cathedral to question why the goddess would take even more away from him. When he had the strength to spare, he would lash out at training dummies and even challenge Felix to spar. But when asked, Felix wouldn’t mention the overwhelming amount of anger behind Ashe’s attacks.

Ashe would purposely hurt himself, most likely to feel the pain he thought he deserved. He began to resemble Marianne in a similar demeanor, but even she would say that she never saw anyone as empty as he was. He no longer was the same kid who would cook for the class or share his fantasy of living as a role of justice. 

This troubled Ingrid the most, as she had been through an all too familiar period in her life. Once losing Glenn at the tragedy of duscur, she too had felt lifeless and hateful towards everyone. Though she thought everyone in their class could relate to those feelings of loss, no one could understand Ashe quite as Ingrid could.

She shared the same ideals and dreams for the future, favored a strong sense of justice, and held a love for literature. Ingrid understood that Ashe only expressed himself through words, and that this amount of silence would only hurt him from the continuous build-up. Ashe had been there to console her through the struggles of accepting herself, so she felt that she must be there for him as well.

~

She wasn’t sure how to approach the situation, but Ingrid knew she had to do something soon. The thought of Ashe slowly dying pained her, so she would spend all her free time in planning on how to help him. If she did nothing, she would lose yet another person she cared for.

“Should I use my charm and make him get a big crush on me?” Sylvain suggested carelessly. “I’ve been told that love makes you forget your sadness.” 

Everyone in the room just stared down Sylvain, Felix stabbing him in the side with his sword sheath. No one could come up with anything that could bring back that bright smile that gave everyone joy.

“This is serious, we have to do something to help him,” Annette said as she played with her sleeves in anxiety. “We can’t just do nothing while he’s going through so much.”

“I agree, but he’s been so distant I doubt we can get through to him,” Dimitri said and pondered at what his classmates could do.

Their professor suggested that everyone try to show him love and support in their own ways, and that sparked an idea to the entire class. It soon seemed that each person set off to execute some kind of plan, but Ingrid was left with the professor in the classroom at a loss of what to do.

“Do you really think we can help him, professor? Ingrid asked, her sadness overflowing as she felt useless.

They only nodded in response, giving Ingrid a book and signaled her to start as well. She walked back to her dorm room, flipping through the book as she recognized the story all too well. It was an infamous tale of a prince who lost his sister and dear friends to war, something that a lot of people theorize as based on a true story.

Ingrid wondered why this would be given to her to help Ashe, she thought that something like this would only make him feel worse. She spent the rest of the night reading the lengthy story, it was filled with sadness and death but had a hopeful ending as the prince found peace in life and new companions.

She found a few similarities between the prince and Ashe and decided that she needed to show Ashe to appreciate life and how he can find that peace. Memories and ideas filled her mind as she tried to recall what had helped her move on, and this caused her to stare out her window into the deep starry sky.

~

Soon everyone seemed to be executing their plans. Each day a class member would dedicate themselves to Ashe for a single day. The professor set a schedule on who should be at each day, and to her surprise, Ingrid was set for the last person to interact with him.

First up was Mercedes, who had basically drained the kitchen storage of sugar dry as she baked every sweet that was archived in her mind. She made sure to make everything as sweet and satisfying as possible. Ashe was given full access to the banquet of desserts, and though he didn’t eat much, he found a love for a specific cinnamon-spiced cookie and asked if he could take some with him.

Up the next day was Annette, who with the help of Dorothea and Mercedes, gave Ashe a full spa day. Before he could reject, they placed him in the sauna for half an hour, and then gave him a full pedicure and moisturized his skin. This helped him to look more alive, and his eyes looked softer and more relaxed.

Then Felix spent the next day training with Ashe until he couldn’t feel anything but physical exhaustion. During this, Catherine talked to Ashe and consoled him on what happened, as he couldn’t push anyone away when feeling drained of all energy. He was able to shed a few tears as he forgave Catherine for that day, and thanked Felix for helping him let go of bodily stress.

Next was Dedue, who spent the following day sharing stories of Duscur and cooking alongside Ashe. Though he preferred reading, he couldn’t say no to one of Dedue’s stories, especially as he was one of the few people Dedue ever opened up to. They both shared their pains of losing people they loved, and in the end, Ashe finally learned how to make a duscur styled meal.

Sylvain kept true to his word and maintained his status as a true flirt. He spent the day after spoiling and teasing Ashe the entire day. Though he didn’t mind the occasional hug and flirty comment from Sylvain, he couldn’t keep himself from growing bright red whenever Sylvain would say his name so smooth. He then took Ashe out for a fancy dinner in town and helped him lighten the weight on his shoulders.

And Dimitri was there to be the next to last, as he took Ashe to meet kingdom knights. He was able to ask all the questions he had about their journey to where they are now, and a small spark of color and life could be seen in his eyes and body. He was able to spend the day alongside the knights and even receive pointers on his bow and lance skills.  
And at last, it was Ingrid’s turn. She knew what she wanted to do, but she wasn’t sure it would resonate well with Ashe, who seemed to love the earth to a fault. Ingrid also remembered that Ashe had a fear of heights, so she kept on second-guessing herself.

~

“Good afternoon Ingrid, do you need something?” Ashe peered up from his book with a slight smile. 

It warmed her heart to see that he had recovered even a little bit, and reassured her that the other’s did a great job. However, he was still hiding away in the library and hadn’t seemed like he was sleeping still. Though he began eating and attending classes and training again, the scars from Lonato’s death were still apparent.

“Yes! I wanted to see if I could take you out for the day?” She was nervous and didn’t want to pressure Ashe into something he didn’t want to do. “I have something I really need to show you.”

Ashe seemed to ponder at her words, as he was familiar with that similar phrase from the rest of his classmates for the past week. He closed his book and nodded, he seemed so sure of himself at last.

Ingrid walked Ashe across the monastery, talking about new books they have read and the casual gossip they used to share with each other. It made Ingrid elated to have her old friend back, but she wanted to make sure that he would stay happy as he was before.

Ashe told Ingrid all about how their classmates were caring for him, and he had a slight light to his eyes and a skip in his step that had been lost. Hearing each task that her classmates took on to cheer Ashe up gave her hope that she could help too, though she set a reminder in her brain to gut-punch Sylvain later.

Once they reached the stables Ashe looked confused at what Ingrid wanted to show him. She stepped into her mount Edward’s stable and saddled him for the two to fly on. Edward rubbed his head against Ingrid’s and seemed excited to fly again, though Ashe looked anything but happy.

“You know, I think his highness requested I help him polish the weapons today, I should g-,” Ashe tried to get away, but Ingrid held him by his hoodie.

“Please, let me show you how I got over Glenn’s death,” Ingrid said with a pain in her voice. “There’s going to be nothing but us up there.”

Ashe hesitantly nodded and followed Ingrid as they hopped onto Edward’s back. They both began to fly up into the air slowly, Ingrid making sure not to rush this experience. Ashe had his arms wrapped tightly around Ingrid’s waist as he hid his face in her back.

As they ascended above the monastery, Ingrid nudged Ashe to look down at the sight. He was shaking slightly, fearing that he couldn’t feel the ground. He slowly opened up his eyes and looked down at the land and admired all the different shapes and colors that filled it.

“Once I started flying, I learned how free and willing it felt to just be in the sky,” Ingrid said looking down at the sight she always took in as a blessing. “Up here, everything is allowed and there are no obstacles.”

Ingrid lead the two of them throughout the land, giving Ashe a tour of so many sights he either neglected or never saw. Ashe kept asking questions, and Ingrid was happy to answer as she could feel his body relax slowly.

They flew below and above the clouds, letting Ashe run his hands through the fluffy mass. The sun beamed down and reflected off the many lakes and rivers surrounding the monastery, and the flora had begun to bloom with a blanket of vibrant colors. Birds flew through the air, and the wind danced around in his hair. 

“Take me somewhere else, somewhere new,” Ashe requested with a slight cheer to his tone. “I wanna see even more of the land!” Ingrid happily obliged and took them above the nearby villages and towns they hadn’t visited. 

The air felt cool and inviting, letting Ashe feel even more at ease as he felt the embers of his sadness blow away in the breeze. He placed his cheek against Ingrid’s shoulder and closed his eyes, taking in the sensation and finding himself in a wave of serene peace.

“I too had been lost in my own feelings, angry and sad at the world for taking away someone so precious to me,” she said, petting Edward softly as he galloped through the sky. “But if I hadn’t found a way to cherish life, I would’ve been corrupted in anger and wouldn’t be able to be the person I am now.”

“This definitely suits you at least, it feels so open and you’re free of all burdens,” he said. “There is nothing to make you feel heavy, no worries or doubts,” Ashe said while looking up to the clear blue of the sky.

“Every horizon is near, and I get to choose which direction to steer,” Ingrid said and let the wind dance in her hair. “Nothing from below is worth shedding a tear, all I have to do is take in the view from up here.”  
Ingrid could hear soft sobbing from behind her, Ashe clenched harder onto her and let out all the tears he kept from letting out. There wasn’t anything holding him back anymore, he let out loud sobs that were drowned out by the wind.

She slowly descended them to a nearby plateau and checked to make sure Ashe was okay. When they got off Edward, she was soon wrapped in a strong hug from Ashe. He was only shedding a few tears now, but the force in his embrace showed how much was lifted off his heart.

“I’m not lost anymore,” Ashe said between sniffing. “I have you, and our class and professor.” Ingrid slowly stroked his hair as he let out his remaining tears.

They stayed there for a moment and shared how both felt from their individual losses. Ashe respected Ingrid even more than he had previously and felt a stronger connection with whom he considered was his closest friend.

“Would you like to fly us back?” Ingrid asked with a soft smile. “You’re the only kind of guy who can fly a pegasus, and Edward agrees too.” Edward bumped his head against Ashe which made them both laugh.

Ashe sat in front of Ingrid, unsure of what to do. She placed her hands softly on his and guided him on how to take off from the ground. Edward slowly ascended up while flapping his wings, and soon they were flying through the sky.

Fear and excitement filled his blood as he was new but eager to this new experience. He wasn’t nearly as graceful and careful as Ingrid, but flying through the air felt so comfortable and fun. He wasn’t worried about failing or messing it up, because he had Ingrid to guide him through the air.

He took his time getting back to the monastery, and once they landed he shared yet another hug with Ingrid, thanking her for letting his mind and heart finally be put at ease. Ingrid was about to go ask if he wanted to grab a bite to eat, but Ashe let out the loudest yawn known to Fodlan. 

“Let’s get you to bed then,” She laughed while Ashe rubbed his eyes and seemed unable to walk by himself.

Ingrid guided Ashe back to his room and placed him on his bed softly where he had immediately fallen asleep. She took a moment to tidy up the room a bit, picking up papers and books that were scattered around the floor and his desk.

Before she left, she left the book the professor had given her on his bedside table, slowly closing the door and meeting up with her class to share in rejoice as their operation was a success.

That night Ashe hadn’t woken up once, snoring could be heard throughout the entire quarters as he could finally sleep without any nightmares to keep him up. Though hardly anyone else got to sleep that night, Ashe woke up the next day with a smile that rivaled the sun.


End file.
